FYI Miami: December 22, 2016

Below are some of the FYIs in this week’s edition. The entire content of this week’s FYIs and Insider sections is available by subscription only. To subscribe click here.

ELECTRICITY COSTS FALL: The average of 10.8 cents per kilowatt hour that Miami area residents paid for electricity in November was 17.6% less than the national average of 13.1 cents, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported last week. That price was down from 11.6 cents per kilowatt hour in the Miami area in November 2015. The local price of electricity has been at least 10% lower than the national average for each of the past five years, the bureau reported.

GASSING UP: Just a year ago the US average for gasoline at the pump fell under $2 a gallon for the first time since 2009. But now, says GasBuddy price tracking service, the price is on the rise, chasing a run-up in crude oil prices. In Miami this week gasoline was at $2.36 per gallon on average, up 3.4 cents in a week, 13.4 cents per gallon in a month and 20.9 cents a gallon over the past year. GasBuddy says “we’re on par to see the largest December increase in gasoline prices nationally since 2010 due to the uptick in oil prices.”

ANIMAL SHELTER: County commissioners on Tuesday approved an amendment to the professional services agreement with LIVS Associates to design a new animal shelter for the Animal Services Department at $300,000, funded from future financing proceeds and increasing the contract time by 762 calendar days. Joe Martinez, who originally pulled the item for discussion, said he’d approve the resolution for expediency’s sake but would like an answer at some point why the price has risen 368%.

A JOBS RECORD, FOR NOW: Miami-Dade jobs in the broad category of trade, transportation and utilities hit an all-time high of 299,400 persons at work in November, up from 292,700 in October, US Bureau of Labor Statistics figures released last week show. The prior high in the sector was 298,600 persons at work last December, the bureau’s figures show. Because jobs in this category spike each December with holiday season shopping, employment in those industries this month is highly likely to break last month’s record.

FOURTH NEW AIR FREIGHT LINE: When Mexican freighter airline AeroUnion this month launched two weekly roundtrips on a triangular route among Mexico City, Mérida and Miami, it became the fourth new all-freight airline to begin serving Miami International Airport this year. US carriers Northern Air Cargo and 21 Air began flying into Miami International in November and Canadian airline KF Cargo in April began links between Miami and multiple points in South America.